Linda R. Shaw, Partner

Linda Shaw concentrates her law practice in environmental, land use and municipal transactional law, and civil litigation and appeals. She represents developers, municipalities, property purchasers and businesses in matters involving the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), brownfield or contaminated real estate, petroleum spills, zoning matters, environmental impact statements, green industrial, alternative energy, and general project development work.

Ms. Shaw established Knauf Shaw with partner Alan Knauf in 1998. Seven years before that she commenced her legal career at Harris Beach PLLC, the New York Power Authority and City of New York Corporation Counsel’s office. Her seven years in the public sector for the City of New York in the Department of Sanitation and the Mayor’s office of Operations has also provided her with the experience to navigate government processes to obtain the most rapid approvals. The focus of Ms. Shaw's practice on the redevelopment of brownfield property has resulted in a number of significant projects being constructed on formerly contaminated real estate including projects such as The Shops at Atlas Park in Glendale, Queens, Silver Towers on 41st Street, Clinton Green on 52-53rd Street in Manhattan, Erie Harbor on the Genesee River in Rochester, the Ritz Carlton in White Plains and many others still in progress from Suffolk County on Long Island, up the Thruway to Yonkers and Albany, and over to Niagara Falls, New York. Her statewide practice has provided her with experience in each DEC region of New York State.

In addition to advising clients on how to remediate contaminated real estate, Ms. Shaw advises clients on how to obtain permits and approvals for green industrial/alternative energy, commercial and residential development projects, and obtain associated land use and zoning decisions, and to prepare environmental review studies, to cut down on the upfront time associated with construction projects on New York contaminated land, and brings cost recovery litigation where appropriate. The experience Ms. Shaw has gained during her more than 20 year legal career, and prior public sector experience, has provided her with the tools necessary to counsel a wide variety of clients through every type of environmental and land use legal issue. She is recognized as perhaps the leading expert in the state on the Brownfield Cleanup Program, and continues to be active in a number of legislative and state policy advisory groups working to improve the program. She is listed in Best Lawyers in America for Environmental Law and Environmental Litigation, and with Superlawyer in the areas of Environmental Law and Energy & Natural Resources Law.

Ms. Shaw served as Vice-President of the New York Environmental Business Association, Legal Chair of the New York Chapter of the National Brownfield Association, Board Member, Executive Committee Member, and a member of the Business Council and New York State Bar Association. She is currently serving as a delegate for the New York State Bar Association. She received the Building a Better New York award from the New York State Business Council for her work on the Brownfields/Superfund Task Force. She is a frequent lecturer at brownfield and continuing legal education seminars.

Ms. Shaw received all three of her degrees of higher education—Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, and Juris Doctorate degrees—from St. John's University and St. John’s Law School.